Mother Fights Off Man Attempting to Kidnap Daughter from Dollar General

Surveillance video camera footage captured a woman fighting off a man attempting to abduct her daughter from a Dollar General grocery store in Hernando, Florida.

A clip of the horrifying video posted to the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office’s Facebook page shows a man in a T-shirt and khaki shorts walking through the store pushing a shopping cart. Mere moments after he disappears from the camera, the man then reappears and is seen dragging a young girl down the aisle by her legs.

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The video shows the 13-year-old girl’s mother desperately attacking and chasing the girl’s would-be kidnapper, as he attempts to pull the girl across the floor as her mother desperately chases after him. She manages to grab her daughter and keep her grip as the man tries to get away.

The Citrus County Sheriff’s Office posted the disturbing footage on its Facebook page:

The girl’s mother is eventually able to fend off the man, who lets the girl go and runs away.

“Craig Bonello, 30, of Hernando, was taken into custody and will be charged with one count of kidnapping and one count of child abuse,” the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office wrote on Facebook. “For that reason, the 13-year-old victim’s identity will not be released.”

The store’s manager acted quickly and alerted an off-duty sheriff’s deputy, who was outside the store’s parking lot.

After being taken into custody, the suspect was charged with kidnapping and child abuse. The girl was not harmed during the incident, police said.